The present invention relates generally to soft drink dispensing machines and relates more specifically to a soft drink dispensing machine which has a modular construction to facilitate manufacture, repair, and reconfiguration.
Soft drink dispensing machines are well known. Examples of known beverage dispensers include U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,310 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,801,048, both entitled xe2x80x9cBeverage Dispenser,xe2x80x9d and commonly-owned U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,188, entitled xe2x80x9cConvertible Beverage Dispenser.xe2x80x9d These patents are incorporated herein by reference.
Stated broadly, a soft drink dispensing machine is simply a device for chilling and for bringing together a flavored syrup and water (carbonated or non-carbonated, as may be appropriate) in the right proportions and for dispensing the drink into a cup. The soft drink dispensing machine thus has a number of components. The machine will include a source of one or more flavored syrups and a source of carbonated water, non-carbonated water, or both. The machine will include suitable plumbing for delivering the syrup and water to a mixing means. The machine will further include a means for chilling the water before it is mixed with the flavored syrup. And finally, the machine will include a component with which the customer interacts to dispense the soft drink through a nozzle and into a cup or other suitable container. This latter element will be referred to herein as the xe2x80x9ccustomer interface unit.xe2x80x9d
The customer interface unit of a typical soft drink dispensing machine may have anywhere from one to twelve different dispensing stations. A dispensing station may be dedicated to a single flavor or may be capable of dispensing a variety of different flavors through a single nozzle. The customer interface unit further includes a means for actuating the machine to dispense a drink. In the case of a single-flavor nozzle, a lever is typically provided adjacent the nozzle, which is displaced by positioning a cup beneath the nozzle, thereby actuating the machine to dispense a soft drink through the nozzle until the cup is removed and the lever is released. In the case of a multi-flavor nozzle, the actuating mechanism will more typically consist of a series of buttons adjacent the nozzle, each button being associated with a different flavor. The customer positions a cup beneath the nozzle and presses one or more buttons to dispense one or more flavors of soft drink into the cup.
Formerly, the conventional practice was to position the customer interface unit of soft drink dispensing machines at a location where only the restaurant employees would have access to it. In recent years it has become more and more common to position the customer interface unit at a location where the restaurant patrons can have access to it, so as to permit the restaurant patrons to serve themselves. As used herein, the term xe2x80x9ccustomerxe2x80x9d shall be understood to include both restaurant employees and the consumers.
Depending upon the needs of the particular food service location, then, the customer interface unit of the soft drink machine may have one or a plurality of dispensing nozzles. The machine may be set up to dispense the same flavor from a number of nozzles, or it may be set up to dispense a number of different flavors, each through its own nozzle. In addition, some soft drink dispensing machines may have multi-flavor nozzles through which a variety of different flavors of soft drinks may be dispensed through a single nozzle, either in place of or in addition to dispensing nozzles dedicated to a single flavor. Because the number and type of nozzles and the number of flavors of soft drinks vary from installation to installation, soft drink machines have heretofore typically been custom configured for the particular installation. Because the plumbing interconnecting the syrup and water sources to the dispensing nozzles must be configured for the particular customer interface unit arrangement, custom-configuring, a customer interface unit can be a time-consuming process. These various combinations and permutations of number of flavors, number of dispensing stations, and types of nozzles make for a large number of possible configurations for the customer interface unit of a soft drink dispensing machine. Consequently, conventional practice is to assess the restaurant operator""s needs and then custom-manufacture a customer interface unit to address those needs. Thus a significant lead time is required to manufacture a customer interface unit to custom specifications, making it difficult to quickly fill orders for new equipment.
Reconfiguring a customer interface unit which has been custom-configured to a particular location can be a difficult and time-consuming process and is difficult to perform in the field.
According to one aspect of the invention, a machine for dispensing beverages may include a support structure and a plurality of valve trays mounted on the support structure in side-by-side relation. The machine may also include a connection block disposed on each of the plurality of valve trays, where each connection block may be configured to receive a first supply of a diluent and a second supply of a diluent. A valve may be disposed on each connection block, and each valve may be configured to be selectively movable between the first supply, the second supply, and a closed position. A nozzle may be mounted to each of the valve trays at a predefined dispensing location, and each nozzle may be configured to selectively receive diluent from the first supply and the second supply.
According to another aspect of the invention, a system of machines for dispensing beverages including a mixture of diluent and flavored concentrate may include a customer unit interface. The interface may include a manifold assembly having a plurality of diluent conduits and a plurality of concentrate conduits arranged in a manifold configuration. A supply assembly may include a plurality of diluent inlets and a plurality of concentrate inlets arranged in a supply configuration. A riser may include a plurality of diluent lines and a plurality of concentrate lines, and may be configured to interface the supply assembly and the manifold assembly.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, a system of machines for dispensing beverages may include a plurality of customer unit interfaces, a plurality of below-counter dispensers, and a plurality of risers. Each of the interfaces may include a manifold assembly having a plurality of diluent conduits and a plurality of concentrate conduits arranged in a same manifold configuration. Each of the dispensers may include a supply assembly, where each of the supply assemblies may include a plurality of diluent inlets and a plurality of concentrate inlets arranged in a different supply configuration. Each of the risers may include a plurality of diluent lines and a plurality of concentrate lines, may be configured to interface one of the supply assemblies and the manifold assembly.
According to another aspect of the invention, a method for assembling a beverage dispensing machine having a manifold assembly and a supply assembly may include determining the manifold configuration, determining the supply configuration, selecting a riser from a plurality of risers based on the determined supply configuration, and connecting the selected riser with the supply assembly and the manifold assembly.
According to yet another aspect of the invention, a machine for dispensing beverages may include a support structure and a manifold assembly disposed at the support structure. The manifold assembly may include a plurality of diluent conduits and a plurality of concentrate conduits. A supply assembly may include a plurality of diluent inlets and a plurality of concentrate inlets, and a riser may include a plurality of diluent conduits and a plurality of concentrate conduits. The riser may be configured to interface the supply assembly and the manifold assembly. The machine may also include a plurality of valve trays disposed on the support structure in side-by-side relation. Each of the valve trays may include a plurality of predefined dispensing locations formed on a lower surface thereof. A nozzle may be disposed on the valve trays at one of the predefined dispensing locations.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.